Scope and Contents of the Materials

The William Richards collection of Helen Bonny materials (1976-2010; 0.25 cubic feet) continas a photocopy of Bonny's PhD thesis, a photograph (1998), and a photocopy of her obituary.

Collection Historical Note

Helen Lindquist Bonny (1921-2010) was born to Ethel and G. Elmer E. and married Oscar E. Bonny on August 17, 1943. She had three children with Oscar: Beatrice, Erich, and Francis. Bonny studied violin with Karl Kuersteiner, as well as studied at the Interlochen Music Camp and Oberlin Conservatory. Later, she studied Music Therapy with E. Thayer Gaston at the University of Kansas. Bonny then began working with patients at the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center in Baltimore as a music therapist and research fellow, which led to her PhD studies at Union Graduate School at Yellowstone. In 1964, she was a registered music therapist and developed Guided Imagery and Music (GIM) in the early 1970’s. Bonny also founded The Institute for Consciousness and the Music Therapy program at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, where she served as an assistant professor and Director of Music Therapy from 1975 to 1980. The Bonny Foundation was formed in the late 1980’s in order to help support those in GIM. On May 25, 2010, Bonny passed away at the age of 89.